


It Takes Two

by Mintaelin



Category: The Last of Us (Video Games)
Genre: Ellie is hot and Dina is the cutest thing in the world, Ellie might be a bit broken, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, If drooling over some characters turns into a story, Insecurrites, It's a bit kinky
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-13 09:01:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29150907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mintaelin/pseuds/Mintaelin
Summary: After a brief meeting five months earlier, Dina's and Ellie’s paths crossed again. And this time Dina will make sure to change something. If Ellie will let her.
Relationships: Dina/Ellie (The Last of Us)
Comments: 29
Kudos: 85





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> First of all,  
> I am not used to writing as you might notice while reading. Hopefully my assemblement of sentences makes sense to you, I worked on that pretty long.
> 
> Second,  
> I am not american, and I have no idea how the american army works. If there’s some crucial error in my story, please let me now.
> 
> Then, the rating.  
> This story will contain sexual content, as well as hints to Light BDSM and Praise Kink, Possessiveness and Lots of Love. If that’s a big no no for you - consider yourself warned.
> 
> Lastly,  
> Thanks for considering my story, I hope that some of you will actually enjoy it.  
> Maybe let me know, would be dope.

**It all started back in May. About five months ago.**

  
  


"Wait, that was supposed to be a town?" Dina chuckled jokingly as she made a show of looking back to see the last few houses disappearing at the end of the road. "We crossed this thing in like, what, twenty seconds?" 

"Ha. Ha." Jesse responded dryly, and for some reason that made the situation even funnier to Dina. Maybe she was a bit tipsy from the champagne at Jesse's house.

Dina was born and raised in a big city. A very big city. The kind of big city where you can take multiple busses for nearly an hour to travel from the north end all the way to the most south station. 

She rarely ever left that city as her entire family lived somewhere scattered across it. Her high school was there, her friends lived there and now, she was attending college there too. 

College, that was where she met Jesse, her boyfriend, currently rolling his eyes at her somewhat childish behaviour. He wasn't annoyed by it though. At least, Dina hoped so. 

He didn't grow up in the city, nor did he attend high school there. His family lived here, in one of these tiny towns, connected through very long roads that travelled alongside fields and forests. 

Jesse and Dina came here for his 23th birthday, visiting his parents, having a nice dinner with them as they celebrated his birthday on a small scale. With champagne. Only that Jesse didn't get to drink much of it himself as he had to drive now. 

She was a bit giddy, his parents were not the only ones Dina would get to know tonight, as they were now heading to the "largest" of these towns here. The one where his high school had been, and where he wanted to meet some of his old friends in a pub. 

"Don't get your hopes up too high though, it's still small." Jesse had warned her - this time Dina did pick up the gleam in his eyes - so he was joking as well and not just annoyed by her attitude. That was a good sign. 

Eventually they reached their destination. The town was slightly larger than the rest, but still mostly consisted of two story houses and without any big buildings in sight. The only thing indicating the presence of the pub was a small neon light blinking showing the word OPEN. 

Dina shook her head slowly with a grin. "Really?" 

Jesse shrugged, nodded once, parking the car. 

Most of the people inside recognised Jesse the second they entered. Former classmates from high school, members of the soccer team he used to train with, even the bartender greeted him with a hug. It was weird how they all looked so similar here, all dressed in earthy colours, with kind of baggy clothes. Jesse fit in well perfectly as if he had never left the town.

Dina was introduced to at least half of them but quickly gave up learning their names as there were simply too many. That didn't stop them from getting along pretty well though. With her mind being already slightly clouded by alcohol, she proudly accepted all the nice comments about her. She felt a bit overdressed for the small pub, her slim black jeans and a red blouse were a stark contrast to all the other colours present, so every little compliment made her feel better. 

Someone threw an arm around Dina pulling her close as he made a show out of jokingly inspecting her from head to toe. “How exactly did that guy coax you into being his girlfriend?” One of the few members of the former soccer team teased Jesse, and his exaggerated pout was enough to make Dina and a few others laugh. 

The funny atmosphere was broken way too easily though by a young asian woman who seemingly appeared out of nowhere. Throwing both her arms around Jesse's shoulders, she hugged him tightly for a second before pulling away. Everyone else just stayed silent. Picking up the weird vibe Dina watched them closely. 

"Long time no see." the short girl quipped happily, but Jesse's reply spoke volumes about what he thought about this. 

"Oh." He said, not moving to hug her back. Not moving to do anything. "Cat."

She rolled her eyes playfully at his cold greeting, her hands stroking over his shoulders and down his chest before letting him go. "El ask me to tell you that she might run a bit late, training and stuff."

His eyes focused on the Asian girl with some kind of emotion that Dina couldn't quite place. It didn't look good at all though. Dina definitely did not want him to look at her like that, ever. "You're still with El?" 

"Mhm." Cat hummed happily, apparently oblivious to Jesse's cold behaviour, or very good at ignoring it. "Nearly five years now. Amazing, isn't it?" 

And with that, she disappeared in the crowd with a small wave of her hand. 

Dina slowly entangled herself from the soccer group to approach her boyfriend who was still watching the crowd the strange girl disappeared in, with a stern expression. 

"Who was that?" She asked carefully and watched the tension from Jesse's face slowly turning into something else, his expression became a bit sad. 

"Cat." he said, sounding exhausted. "Back in High School, she was my best friend's girlfriend. Apparently she still is." He looked over to one of his friends who gave a short nod to confirm that. 

"You guys don't like her? Why is that?" She seemed nice enough, maybe a bit too touchy for Dina’s liking but being treated like that by Jesse? That was rare. 

"That's a bit awkward to explain." Jesse sighed deeply, a sad apologetic smile on his lips. "But I bet you will understand that within the next few hours."

And he was right. 

"Jesse," Dina had pulled his sleeve to get his attention, pointing in the far end of the room where Cat was making out with a young blonde man, "I think your friend's finally here." Thinking Jesse must wait eagerly for his friend to arrive.

But he just smiled sadly at Dina. "That's not El." And as soon as these words had left his mouth Dina's heart hurt as she realized that this was the reason he didn't like the Asian girl. 

“Not?” Jesse shook his head slowly and Dina stared into her drink. The cocktail glass in her hand suddenly felt too heavy and she didn't feel like drinking anymore. 

Five years. 

Cat had said they're together for nearly five years and… her eyes wandered back to the two kissing in the corner, but she quickly looked away again. Was that a normal thing back in their high school days as well? Why didn’t anyone say something? She tried to imagine if this were to happen to one of her friends. Feeling hollow she discarded her drink on the bar before she hugged Jesse's middle, staying close to him. 

Never would she have thought that this feeling could get any worse. 

Oh boy, had she been wrong. Meeting Jesse's best friend from high school made everything ten times worse. 

"Yo! El!" Someone called and a few people gathered to welcome the late guest. 

A tall girl with a tired but warm smile greeted everyone with words, complicated handshakes or hugs. Wearing simple black pants and a dark green shirt, her slightly wet red hair up in a messy half-ponytail, it was clear that she had made sure to take a quick shower after whatever practice Cat had mentioned.

She slowly but surely made her way to Jesse and Dina, and the latter finally had to let go of him after clinging to his middle for the better part of the last hour. 

“Wah, birthday boy.” She greeted her voice calm and pleasant but the corner of her mouth hinting at a tiny sly smirk, “Did you actually grow since last time?” 

Some of his close friends had to laugh and even Dina couldn’t hold back a chuckle as the red haired girl was obviously a few inches taller than him and probably very proud of that.

“Idiot.” Jesse said with a heartwarming smile on his lips, they shook hands, pulled each other in a hug without letting go of their handshake and pat each other’s back. “Good to see you again.” 

“Yeah. ‘s been a while.” her green eyes fell on Dina and her smirk-smile grew. “Aw, look at you! You really did find the prettiest girl in the city?” 

While Jesse and his friends share a laugh about what must have been an old insider joke, Dina tried to control her blush, keeping it to a minimum. Unable to answer with words she wanted to thank her with a smile but it all but vanished from Dina’s lips as she watched slightly tanned hands snake around the taller girl’s body.

“Hey Ellie. There you are.” Cat’s voice sounded as cheerful and nice as it did earlier but now it gave Dina chills, effectively eliminating any possible blush on her cheeks as the feeling of emptiness returns. 

_Why does no one say anything?_

Even when Ellie turned around, draping her arm over Cat’s shoulders, pulling the smaller Asian girl closer to her body, smiling sweetly at her. So clearly oblivious to what just had occurred a few minutes ago. 

_Please, someone make this stop._

Her green eyes clearly held a lot of adoration of the smaller girl as Ellie smiled at something that Cat had said. Dina didn’t hear that, watching this felt so wrong. She looked up at Jesse who gave her that sad smile again in return, and she knew. 

That was no one time occurrence. That was exactly how it always was. 

Everyone knew.

There’s not much left of the night, some friends already leaving and hugging Jesse good-bye, telling him to come visit more often, ordering him to bring Dina with him. 

Ellie and two of the soccer guys, Michael and Derek - _or was it Dave?_ \- stayed with Dina and Jesse nearly the entire time, talking about their school days, letting Dina in on stupid things Jesse did in his High School days. 

Their friendship was so genuine and honest and they included Dina so easily that even though she was not part of their group years ago she didn’t feel excluded in any way.

Cat on the other hand disappeared somewhere in the crowd, drinking, dancing, and only found her way back to their table when she barely could walk straight. She let herself fall onto Ellie’s lap, and Ellie’s arms wrapped around the drunken girl in an unspoken agreement, holding her close. One hand gently running her back. 

_I don’t want to see this._

“Ah, and remember when we pranked Mr Will in...” Michael started another story but this time Dina didn't follow the events, couldn’t, really. At some point the three guys laughed at the nostalgic part, but Dina was still focused on Ellie. As much as she didn’t want to see this, she could not keep her eyes off of her. Ellie, who was completely focused on her girlfriend, a hand combing through Cat’s short black hair as she whispered things to her, questions, which were only answered by tired nods and slow-motion head shakes from Cat.

Eventually Ellie looked up again.

“Sorry, guys. I think we have to head home. Cat’s about to fall asleep any minute.”

Dina could feel Jesse tense next to her and when she looked up she could see his dark eyes looking at one of his friends with an unspoken question, he just shrugged helplessly before nodding.

Ellie, who clearly misunderstood the entire situation, had a very worried expression as he watched Jesse. “We can still talk a bit at my place if you guys want.” she offered apologetically. 

The redhead coaxed Cat into standing up, leading her girlfriend to her car, telling the other that they will meet at her appartement. 

Michael and Dave - _pretty sure it was Dave after all_ \- headed for their own cars, which left Dina and Jesse alone. He didn’t start the engine right away, seemingly lost in thoughts but as soon as Dina wanted to say something he cut her off.

“Don’t.” His voice sounded so much more tired than just a few minutes ago in the pub. “I know what you want to say. Just… don’t.”

“Someone needs to tell her.”

There was a long pause that had Jesse holding the steering wheel and staring out the window into nothing at all. Dina was sure he was about to come up with a reason why they shouldn’t tell her, she was ready to retort, but his next words were even worse.

“She knows.” 

_She… what?_

She couldn’t answer, but Jesse did not seem to expect her to as he continued after a few more seconds.

“It’s been like this since the last year of high school. We tried to tell her. All of us did. But Ellie… Ellie is under the weird impression that… “

His head sunk, his forehead rested on his hands. 

“She thinks that as long as Cat will choose her at the end of the day, everything’s well.”

“But… that’s…”

“I hoped, I really hoped she would have moved on by now. I didn’t know…”

“How can she, how can Ellie look at her like that, knowing that Cat…?” _Betrayed her? Cheated on her? Didn’t care?_ Dina felt sick, and that was most definitely not the alcohol’s fault tonight.

An engine hummed as a car pulled out of their parking position onto the road. Jesse tiredly looked up.

He reached to turn on the engine. “We should -” But Dina stopped him by holding his hand. 

“Why didn’t you end this when you found out?”

His expression became pained.

“Because we didn’t know.” A whisper, and Dina never saw her boyfriend so... so… hurt. “We were in training camp for two weeks, only two weeks Dina. And we come back and Ellie… She lost her father. Her only family. And all her friends were _on vacation…_ ” 

He takes a deep breath. Dina squeezed his hand but he pulled away just seconds after.

“I don't know how, but Cat picked up all the pieces, she held Ellie together, kept her going, we were really thankful back then. We told Ellie how happy we were for her, that it’s good to see her with Cat. When we realized that Cat had been playing with Ellie’s insecurities all the time it was too late.”

He starts the engine and the headlights illuminate the night around the car.

“The damage had been done.”

They didn’t talk for the rest of the ride, though it was only a few minutes. All Jesse asked of her was to “Please don’t bring it up.” when Ellie was around and - although very reluctantly - Dina eventually agreed.

Ellie’s flat was in one of the simple houses that all looked the same to Dina, white, two-stories-high, standing side by side with the tiniest front yard. The front door was open revealing two apartment doors on the ground floor and a set of stairs leading up. Jesse clearly knew this place, closing the front door behind him he led Dina upstairs, passing another set of two appartement doors until they reached a single door leading to the attic. 

It was a small flat up here, the door led Dina into a room that was simultaneously used as a living room and kitchen, a tiny bedroom at the very end of it and an equally tiny bathroom. Dina could see Ellie carrying a sleeping Cat to their tiny bedroom as she followed Jesse inside. Nearly the entire space of the area was used by a table in the kitchen area and an unexpectedly large couch in the living room area. They sat at the table with Michael and Dave as it took a few minutes before she emerged again, closing the door behind her as softly as possible.

“Anything you want?” Ellie asked, opening a small cupboard in the kitchen area, even though no one had answered she wordlessly put four small water on the table before she joined them. 

The conversation was much like the one in the pub, although a lot less loudly but with some pictures Ellie pulled out of a shelf, showing Jesse with really really long hair and even a time when Jesse had been just an inch taller than Ellie. That was a pretty old picture though.

It was nearly three in the morning when Dina couldn’t hold back a yawn anymore.

“Where ‘you guys gonna stay for the night?” Ellie asked after Dina failed to hide her exhaustion. 

“I got my dad’s old car, the big one, with enough space for - “

“- the mattress in the back.” three voices finished in unison and Dina couldn’t believe that was an actual thing because Jesse had to work really hard in order to convince her to agree to that.

“Oooh, I want to do that again,” Michael said and Dave agreed eagerly “Good times.”

“Part of me still hoped that was a joke.” she admitted and the boys laughed at her for being a “city girl” or something. 

“If you rather prefer the couch…?” Ellie started, nodding towards the furniture in question. Dina’s uneasiness must have been visible. “Seems like the boys want to play tuna in that car.”

“Then it’s settled!” Michael concluded, while Jesse softly nudged Dina. “That’s okay with you?” but she didn’t miss the way his eyes gleamed with child-like joy, as soon she nodded he was up.

“I can’t believe they’re really doing that.” Dina commented as they could hear the boys trying to be quiet when they headed down the stairs.

“It's nostalgic, kinda.” Ellie guessed, “I bet they’re not so happy with the decision tomorrow morning but will still call it the best thing ever.”

_Yeah, that sounds like Jesse._

“I’m pretty happy you offered me this,” Dina let herself fall onto the soft cushions of the L-shaped couch, while Ellie took a seat on the smaller end. “That’s so much better.”

Ellie handed her a small pillow and a blanket, even offered to give Dina some sleeping clothes but Dina claimed that she would be fine once she got rid of the shoes. “I’m already causing you enough trouble.”

There was a long silence as Dina got a bit comfortable under the blanket, eventually looking up at Ellie, who was still sitting there quietly. She visibly took a deep breath and her hands balled into fists for half a second before she relaxed again, green eyes focused on Dina.

“Actually, I was wondering, if I could ask you something?”

The question, as well as the obvious preparation needed to ask it, seemed serious and Dina slowly wiggled back into a sitting position, facing Ellie who smiled at her apologetically. “Sure.” Dina answered as calm as possible, “Shoot.”

“You’re from Jackson, right? Like, you grew up there?”

“Mh hm.” 

“It’s hm.. pretty big isn’t it?”

Dina chuckled. “You could say so. Have you been there before?”

“No. No, I …” Ellie scratched her neck nervously as she clearly was searching for words. “I’m in the army.” She explained eventually. “ And I might have a chance to get stationed there, in Jackson.”

“And you’re considering…?” Dina guessed and Ellie nodded.

“It might sound really weird, telling you all this stuff even though I barely know you, but maybe a different opinion will help.”

Dina didn’t know whether this part was meant for her ears or if it was rather Ellie just trying to make sense of things so she just nodded slowly.

“I might have family there.” Ellie said eventually. “Family that might not know me, but… family. Maybe. Actually, I don’t know if you can call it family.”

Dina stayed silent, waiting if Ellie wanted to elaborate but the redhead just looked at her, clearly not sure how to continue. 

“Do you know who?”

She nodded. “My adoptive father’s brother.” She laughed humorlessly after saying that. “Fuck, that must sound so stupid.”

“Would be nice though.” Dina commented calmly and green eyes focused her, full of emotion, she obviously did not expect Dina to take this seriously. And Dina couldn’t help but wonder what Cat’s reaction to this idea was. “Would be your uncle, kinda?”

“Yeah.”

“You know where to find him?”

“I only know he was in the army,” her brows furrowed and her expression changed into a crooked apologetic smile, “like 15 years ago.”

“Woah. That’s not much.”

“You don’t say.”

They softly giggled despite the serious topic before Dina reached for one of Ellie’s hands, squeezing it softly. “Well, if you decide to come to Jackson, you can count me in. I want to help you.”

Ellie’s smile was honest and bright, and she shook her head in disbelief. 

“Thank you.”

Ellie eventually left for the bedroom after making sure - no less than three times - than Dina was comfortable and really really had everything she needed.

The couch was indeed pretty comfortable, Dina would repeatedly tell Ellie the next morning when the taller girl was about to make coffee, until Ellie raised her hands in defeat. 

Jesse had sent her a text in the middle of the night that they drove to Dean’s _(Oh, it had been Dean, not Dave)_ as the car trunk was not big enough for three young men. 

It was about 10ish in the morning when Jesse pulled into the driveway in front of Ellie’s apartment building. Cat had just woken up a few minutes ago but was already clinging to Ellie, leaving Dina with the internal conflict of not being able to look away while watching Ellie treating Cat with the utmost care. In the end, they both headed downstairs with them to say goodbye to Dina and Jesse. 

Much like the day before Jesse was hugged closely by Cat, this time showing less discomfort probably because Ellie was there. And Dina was surprised to get a similar treatment from the asian girl. A tight hug, and a pretty cheerful “It was nice to meet you, Dina!” that she could only answer with a dumbfounded “Uh, sure, same.”

Cat quickly reattached herself to her girlfriend who was clearly taken by surprise but smiled at Dina as she waved them goodbye. 

Neither Jesse nor Dina said anything as they drove off, in the mirror Dina saw Ellie turning to Cat, asking something that was answered by Cat pressing her lips on Ellie’s and excitedly pulling her inside again.

She waited until Jesse had driven out of town before she asked him to stop the car. “I’m feeling sick.” she squeezed out before her stomach felt like proving a point. Jesse said nothing. She blamed the alcohol for her sickness, but both of them knew, that was not completely true.

  
  
  
  
  


**Five months later, September.**

[1 New Message]

Unknown Number


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey!  
> I wanted to thank you for reading, leaving those comments and kudos!  
> That's really cool. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy.

**Five months later, September.**

1 New message

unknown number 

  
  
  
  


Sitting in a quiet café, not too far away from their college, Dina was idly sipping on her special caramel latte while working on an assignment with her friend Amy. 

"Your phone." Amy said eventually, still focused on her papers while Dina was spacing out, watching people passing by through the large window the café provided. 

"Huh?" Dina asked as her brain registered far too late that her friend had said something. 

"Your phone, it keeps vibrating."

"Oh." Dina set down her cup, and reached for her phone that showed several new messages from an unknown number. The moment of confusion only lasted for a few seconds until she read the first few words. 

  
  


Unknown[14:27] : hey Dina 

Unknown[14:27] : this is Ellie 

Unknown[14:27] : got your number from jesse

Unknown[14:27] : hope that's okay

Unknown[14:28] : I'm in Jackson since yesterday. I was wondering if you were free sometime this month? I could need some guidance here. 

  
  


"Who is it? ... Hey, Dina?" Amy had actually put her pen down by now, her arms comfortably crossed on the table as she leaned towards Dina, curious. "You're smiling."

"Yeah.. mhm.." Dina began, searching for words as her eyes kept focusing on the small text, all the while Amy seemed more than ready to listen. "Okay. You remember when I told you about that trip on Jesse's birthday?" 

That was a bit of a rhetorical question. This trip had changed Dina's life quite a lot and she talked about it for weeks. With Amy, with Jesse, thought about it when she woke up at night. 

It had left her with a weird empty feeling. At first, it brought her and Jesse even closer together, she would search for his contact more often, hold his hand everywhere, lean against him, spend more night at his home. 

She couldn't explain it, she felt like she needed it back then. Jesse would often try to carefully hint at the changes in her behaviour. 

But the most crucial change was, that no matter how much more time they spend together, they slowly grew apart. Dina didn't know why, but she was still convinced that the reason they eventually broke apart was related to that very evening. 

They were still friends, but it was a bit weird to be around each other for now. She wondered why Ellie would ask Jesse for her number, but at the same time she was just glad that she did. 

"Mh hm." Her bright eyebrows traveled up slightly as Amy nodded. "That was quite some time ago though."

"Do you remember when I told you about Jesse's friend Ellie?" There was a grin on Amy’s face. Oh, she knew. She knew Dina way too well. 

"Oh yeah." Amy laughed. "I remember that veeeery well. How did you call her? The sweetest person on earth who is enslaved by a greedy witch?"

Dina pursed her lips. "I never said that!" At least she never said it like that. Though it seemed kinda fitting.

"Might as well."

"Nhnn." Dina grumbled as she felt a bit pouty, but that didn't last very long. "Aanyways. Ellie. Ellie is in Jackson."

Now, Amy was smiling as well. A knowing smile.

Dina was not sure if she liked being so easily to read, but on the other hand… she did have a really long monologue over Ellie that poor Amy had to listen to for a few days. So she guessed it had been fairly easy to read her on this topic.

"Sooo…?" Amy started, but didn't seem to say any more than this.

"So what?" 

"What' you gonna do, Dina?" 

"Nothing. I will probably show her around a bit?" Dina shrugged to emphasise her point, before looking into her coffee, one of her fingers traced the edge of her mug, as she was thinking about Amy's words. 

_Should_ she be doing something? 

Usually she didn’t like to interfere with anyone’s business, but this… A tiny part of her wanted to change things. That part was convinced that Ellie deserved better. 

She stopped her train of thoughts right there. Was she really allowed to decide what was better for Ellie? She did barely know her. And Jesse even told her not to do anything. 

She wouldn’t. 

She wouldn’t put her nose in things that had nothing to do with her.

...right?

"We could all go to the new bakery in the mall?" Amy offered. "I'd love to meet her, you know."

  
  


**~**

  
  


"Dina!" 

Dina felt like re-living a deja vu. 

With switched roles. 

While Cat apparently hadn't changed a bit, it was now Dina who received the weird overly familiar greeting Jesse had received months ago. 

Appearing out of nowhere, Cat had found her in the crowds in the mall, calling out her name with a smile before hugging her like a long lost friend. Dina felt out of place, just standing there, accepting the gesture without any reaction. She tried to smile politely. 

She should have known. Ellie probably wouldn't come here alone. Of course Cat would trail along if Ellie moved to Jackson. 

She was wearing tight blue jeans, and a black shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows, revealing soft colored ink on tanned skin, and a collection of bracelets around her wrists.

She could see Amy's confused expression from right beside her, probably wondering why Dina hadn't reacted yet. 

"Cat." Dina greeted, as politely as her confused state allowed. Just like Dina expected though, the Asian girl wasn't at all bothered by the lack of response. 

"That's some amazing mall here." Cat commented as she let go of Dina, a smile on her lips as she looked around. "I nearly didn't find you, all Ellie said was that you'd be in front of some new bakery. Gotta admit though they o have some pretty awesome stuff on their buffet!"

_Where's Ellie?_ Is the first thing Dina wanted to ask, but instead turned the attention to her still slightly confused friend. "Uh, Cat, that's Amy." 

"A fellow dwarf!" Cat commented and Amy laughed, the both girls actually being on the same eye level - both around five to six inches smaller than Dina. 

Amy received the quickest hug in the history of hugs before Cat was already retreating. "Okay! You guys don't move so I can find you again while getting Ellie, kay? Kay."

And she was gone. Disappeared in the crowd. Before any of them could even voice their agreement. 

"The evil witch yeah?" Amy asked as she crossed her arms and looked at Dina with a raised eyebrow, she sounded a tiny bit amused by the entire situation. 

"She's awkward." Dina tried to reason, but her voice was small. She know how this must look to an outsider. Dina felt like she was being unreasonable. Cat never really did anything to her, it was just her behaviour towards Ellie that really pissed her off. But it was hard to explain that, or even imagine that, if you only knew this cheerful side of Cat.

"Hm." Amy hummed but didn't say anything further. 

They waited like they've been told, right in front of the bakery until eventually, Cat and Ellie came into view. Ellie once again being the complete opposite of her girlfriend.

While Cat was jumpy, excitedly commenting on everything and emphasising her words with wild gestures, Ellie had her hands stuffed into her pockets, her eyes scanning her surroundings while she calmly listened, nodding along ever so often. A small smile appeared on her lips as she saw Dina. 

"Hey." Ellie said, her voice just as soft and pleasant as Dina remembered and she didn't even have to think about smiling politely, Dina was already smiling on her own. The taller girl looked exactly as she had remembered, auburn hair pulled back in a messy half ponytail, green eyes sparkling as she offered a crooked smile. 

Her dark denim jeans, a greenish-grey button-up shirt and black and white vans would have looked casual if it weren't for her posture. Clearly, being in the army had left a mark on her appearance. Her very straight posture being the most obvious detail, making her look incredibly tall, but also the way the fabric clung to Ellie's body, hinting at the strong muscles of her arms. 

Despite her strength though, Ellie's touch was light and soft as she put a hand on Dina's back, apparently in some form of greeting. 

"Ellie, hey." Dina was still contemplating if it was appropriate to hug her. She felt like hugging her. But maybe that was still a bit too intimate. 

Either way, her decision was made for her as Cat came into the picture again, throwing her arms around Ellie's neck, effectively turning her attention away from Dina. 

"And that's Amy, Dina's friend. It was just a friend, right? Or was it girlfriend?" 

"... friend." Dina clarified slowly, not sure why this question came up in the first place but Cat just shrugged, turning back to Ellie who greeted Amy with a nod. 

"Baby," Cat's voice drawled, and Dina's mind was left wondering if that was the way the Asian girl usually addressed Ellie in public or if that was to show off. Maybe she was getting paranoid. This was ridicule. "Come, you gotta see this." And with that Cat pulled her off in the direction of the buffet. 

"I still don't see why you don't like her." Amy commented, watching how Cat picked some muffins, fruits and ordered coffee, all while Ellie kept standing close to her, hands in her pockets for the most part and eyes on Cat. There was a smile on her face, as she said something to Cat, who reached to add two donuts to their plate. 

"They're kinda cute."

Dina kept silent, watching as they paid, as Ellie picked up the tablet and as Cat waved them to come closer to the table she chose for them. 

"I hope simple glazed donuts are okay," Cat quipped, giving Dina and Amy the two simple donuts which earned Dina another raised eyebrow from Amy, her long blonde curls hiding her expression from the others. 

"Yeah sure."

Maybe Dina had been wrong. She only met them for one evening, and admittedly - there was a bit of alcohol involved. Maybe she just picked up the animosity towards Cat from Jesse? 

But even after trying to rationalise her behaviour, there was that one thing Dina couldn't erase, re-interpret or forget:

Cat had been kissing at least one other guy. She saw that. And no matter how often her brain would chew on this situation, there was no way to explain this behaviour from Cat. At least, not in a nice way. 

And the thought that she could cheat on sweet, sweet Ellie… that left Dina with the conclusion, that no, no she still didn't like Cat. 

Their first meeting was nearly too normal. Most of the time Cat was talking, and Amy would be curiously listening. They got along incredibly well. While Dina was picking at her doughnut. She barely followed the conversation which mainly consisted of differences between their schools, their friends, their city.

It was when Amy asked the most important question that Dina’s attention was brought back to them.

“So how long are you planning to stay?”

“Mh,” Cat hummed looking at Ellie who turned the mug in her hands rather uncomfortably. It was clear that Cat had wanted her girlfriend to answer that question but Ellie remained quiet, only gave a noncommittal shrug.

Cat elaborated a bit.

“We’re not sure yet. If Ellie decides to take the position offered to her, then we will stay here. For now, definitely this month.”

"You haven't decided yet?" 

Ellie sighed, and Dina felt like taking back her question, it clearly made the taller girl uncomfortable. She'd avoid eye contact while she shook her head once. 

Cat smiled sweetly and rolled her eyes in fake mockery. "She'll come around, change just doesn't sit well with her."

Cat would proceed to talk about how they were staying in a nearby hotel, and how she could very much used to that if it wasn't that expensive. She wouldn't have a problem finding a job here, in her words "such a big city surely has enough tattoo studios that one of them would hire me."

  
  


**~**

  
  


It was hours after that meeting that Dina would find the courage to approach that subject again. 

Dina[19:51] : hey

Dina[19:51] : are you alright? 

Dina[19:51] : you were really quiet today

Ellie[20:07] : hey

Ellie[20:07] : sorry about that 

Ellie[20:07] : was not my best mood

Dina had picked up the phone the second the first message made it vibrate, now staring at the conversation, contemplating if it would be alright to ask her what's wrong. 

Maybe she shouldn't have messaged her in the first place. She bit her lip, wondering what to say when another message appeared. 

Ellie[20:09] : it was pretty nice though seeing you again 

Dina could feel her cheeks heating up even though she was pretty sure that this was just Ellie being nice. It took her a few seconds to realise that Ellie still hadn't answer her question yet. 

Dina[20:10] : it was

Dina[20:10] : but

Dina[20:10] : are you alright Ellie? 

Ellie[20:11] : i dont know 

Dina[20:11] : can i ask what's wrong? 

Ellie[20:11] : i'm not sure

Ellie[20:11] : i mean you can ask 

Ellie[20:11] : but i'm not sure what's wrong 

Ellie[20:11] : just not feeling good today 

Dina[20:11] : mhm

Dina[20:11] : is it because of that job maybe? 

Ellie[20:11] : yeah

Ellie[20:12] : kinda

Dina[20:12] : you haven't decided yet? 

There was a long pause and Dina feared she might have crossed a line. If Ellie really didn't want to talk about that she should leave it. She let herself fall onto her bed, pressed her face into the pillow and sighed. 

Fuck. She messed up. 

It's not like she could take that message back, Ellie had already read it. Maybe ask something else entirely? Change the topic? Say sorry? 

Ellie[20:19] : what if taking this job doesn't change a thing? if i don't find him, if he doesn't like me? 

Ellie[20:19] : I make Cat give up her life back at home for a "maybe" 

Dina was quick to answer. 

Dina[20:20] : it's important to you

Dina[20:20] : Cat knows that, im sure she wants you to choose however you like

Dina[20:20] : she seemed pretty happy here

It felt weird to defend Cat in any way. So weird. She didn't really like that. But if that would help, urgh, so be it. Maybe she could at least let Ellie know that… 

Dina[20:21] : also 

Dina[20:21] : would be cool to see you more often

These silent pauses within Ellie's responses would drive Dina crazy. Sooner or later. More probably sooner. She rolled onto her back, staring at the ceiling. 

The phone gave a small sound, indicating an incoming message. 

Ellie[20:25] : thank you

Ellie[20:25] : really 

Dina smiled, staring at that message. She really hoped Ellie would stay. 

If Ellie were to move here, could she try to get to get closer to her? 

Dina[20:27] : Tell me about that position?


	3. Chapter 3

It was one of these events, this evening. Dina had been looking forward to it the entire week, but also hoped that it would never happen. 

It could be nice, so so nice, but at the same time it could also turn out to be a mood wrecking disaster. 

She was sure of that. 

Amy laughed it off. 

It had been Amy and Cat who came up with the idea, both being the definition of outgoing people, social butterflies in any way, and apparently getting along rather nicely. It had been them who 'scheduled' a night out in the bars and pubs of Jackson, so that Cat could get to know the city by night. 

"It'll be fun."

"Ellie will be there."

Amy pointed out numerous times in different variations in order to convince Dina to get ready. The latter was still unsure about the whole plan. She kept trying to find reasons not to go, but… Ellie.

In the end, Amy's argument did work. And the mischievous gleam in Amy's eyes told Dina that the blonde girl was very much aware of what made Dina agree. 

_Ellie_. 

Dina had put serious effort into her outfit and hair tonight. 

A nearly invisible pair of tights hugged her legs with a soft glamour, a black skirt covered her thighs, and an oversized dark green shirt would add a very cute element to everything. Her hair was pulled into a neat bun, some carefully chosen strands framing her face. 

Would Ellie like that? The first time they met she called Dina pretty, but then her hair was down in free curls. maybe she should… 

"Dina, you're good." Amy chuckled as Dina checked her hair for the fifth time in the rear mirror, but only earned a soft grumble from Dina. 

She wondered if Amy really knew why this was so important to her. Probably not, but that might be good. 

The plans changed before they even met with the others. 

While the original plan had been to hop from pub to pub, trying the various specialties of their drink menu, their schedule was quickly discarded. 

Maybe they shouldn't have planned to start in Amy's favorite pub. 

Because Cat just quickly declared it her favorite one as well, even though she had yet to see a second one at least that's what a text to Amys said, declaring it will be the perfect location to get drunk tonight. 

"I suppose that means they're already there." Amy joked as she read out the text message to Dina. She dusted off her black dress and ran her fingers through her blonde curls, as soon as they got out of the car, all while smiling happily at Dina. 

"You know, we should do this more often."

Dina chuckled. "We're not even there yet."

"Still. I'm liking this already. I mean, look at us. You're pretty, I'm pretty, we're getting drunk with friends," Amy shrugged, "sounds really good to me."

The bar was comfortably busy when they arrived. People were talking and drinking left and right, but it wasn't too crowded yet. 

Cat was fairly easy to spot, sitting at the bar, the most colourful drink right in front of her as she stopped her conversation with the barkeeper to wave at the two girls arriving. 

"Fashionably late, I see." Cat chuckled, greeting both of them with her usual hug, shaking her head with a broad smile when Dina remained as unresponsive to her hug as last time. "I hope you don't mind that I ordered my first drink without you, I had great company, it wasn't easy to refuse. You guys know Jason?" She motioned to the bartender, giving both parties a short introduction. 

_What about Ellie? Is she here yet?_

Either Cat heard her thoughts or - more likely - would have reached that part of information anyways right now, because that exact moment she motioned to the back of the pub. 

A large bench covered the entire length of the opposite wall, some small tables in front of it gave the guests some space to gather in groups. 

However, in the very corner, one table was nearly empty save for a single glass. The bench seat occupied by a familiar person, her eyes focused on her phone, her entire posture revealing how she wanted to be somewhere else entirely. 

Ellie.

She was dressed in black pants and a white button up. If she was to sit closer to the bar, people could probably assume she was one of the barkeepers tonight. 

Trying to keep a little bit of decency, Dina talked with Cat and Amy for a few minutes as her drink was carefully put together by the barkeeper, Jason, as Cat had introduced him, before she could use her drink as an excuse to join Ellie at the small table in the far corner of the room. 

She could have picked the chair opposite to Ellie, or the one on the side of the table, maybe that would have been a more polite choice. 

But Ellie obviously heard the approaching steps, and with one look and a tiny crooked smile, she subconsciously convinced Dina to just take a seat on the bench beside her. 

Her phone was put on her thighs, only a loose grip on it as green eyes followed Dina's movements closely, Ellie didn't seem to mind as the other girl sat next to her. 

"Hey." 

Dina shortly wondered how Ellie managed to make this word sound always the same. Soft, quiet, but nearly intimate. Trying to match her tone Dina's answer felt more like a soft whisper. "Hey." 

Ellie's reaction was a soft chuckle. She watched as Dina put her drink next to her own, before her gaze travelled along the oversized sleeve back to Dina's face. And if Dina didn't feel pretty before she sure as hell did feel so now as Ellie's lips slowly curled into a smile again. 

"So, um…" Dina began in an attempt to break the silence and her eyes eventually fell on Ellie's phone which had previously been Ellie's sole focus of attention, "Why are you back here all alone? " 

Ellie's smile looked a bit apologetically, "Small talk with strangers and drinks are not really my thing." 

"Huh."

"What about you? Not with the others?" 

"I, uh…" She didn't dare to say that she preferred Ellie's company, too afraid of how the other girl might react. Instead, Dina leaned back into the bench, pulled the long sleeves over her wrists a bit nervously, very aware of the green eyes watching her actions. "I prefer this part of the pub." She answered with a shrug, not ready to look back at Ellie, fearing that she might have picked up more than that. 

She would look back at the bar and could see Cat and Amy who seemed to have found another group of people, all toasting and joking together. 

Dina used to be part of gatherings like that. She knew very well how these evenings tend to end. With flirts and drinks and kisses. It was normal to hook up with someone, it was basically the point of it, but still, today she dreaded that outcome. 

She didn't want to witness anything like that concerning Cat. But it was already too late. The asian girl seemed to have already decided on a companion for the evening as one of her arms was hugging a tall guy's shoulder

As soon as Cat leaned in to kiss him Dina looked away. 

She couldn't believe Cat would do that while Ellie was in the same room. The thought alone brought back the feeling of emptiness, her hands forming small fists as she looked back to Ellie. 

Her green eyes were casted down, on her hands holding the phone. The screen wasn't even turned on, she was just slowly turning it between her hands. 

It was that moment when Dina remembered Jesse's words. She could practically hear his voice in her head. 

_She knows._

Ellie knew and she probably felt the same right now. No, she probably felt even worse. 

"Ellie…" 

"Mh?" The redhead just hummed, just barely paying attention, successfully tuning out where she was and what was happening. 

_Please… just don't bring it up._

"Why do you let her do this to you?" 

Ellie's posture instantly stiffened and there were a few seconds of silence between them. Dina feared she might have angered the redhead by asking that, and prepared to apologise when Ellie released a shaky breath. 

"I'm," she started but still seemed to think about her choice of words. "I'm not letting _her_."

"But that's exactly what -" 

"I'm not letting her." Ellie said again, her words a lot. more confident now, though that didn't last very long. "I'm not letting her cheat. She's…"

Dina turned in her seat to face Ellie a bit more and reached for one of Ellie's hands, making the taller girl smile slightly. 

"It might sound stupid to you. " Ellie warned with a cold chuckle. 

"Try me."

Her voice was small, and her eyes focused on Dina's hand holding hers. "It's more like she let _me_ be her girlfriend, even though I'm clearly not enough." 

"That's not being a girlfriend, that's just… hurting you." 

Ellie chanced a glance towards the bar, clearly not happy with what she saw since her facial expression was mirroring exactly what Dina just said, a small pained smile on her lips. 

It hurt to see Ellie like this, but this time she wouldn't just watch. This time Dina would change something. 

Suddenly feeling braver, she let go of Ellie's hand, instead, she moved closer and slowly moved to straddle Ellie's lap. Effectively pulling Ellie's eyes from the scene at the bar. 

"What are you looking at?" Dina asked with a small smile. 

"Um, you, I guess?" Ellie answered nearly shyly which gave Dina another boost of confidence. 

"Mh hm." she hummed in agreement and moved her hand to rest on Ellie's shoulder while she was constantly checking her face for any signs of disagreement. 

There was none. There was something in Ellie's eyes, but it clearly was no negative emotion. It fueled her. The way Ellie was looking at her. That she seemed to like it. 

Dina could see Ellie checking the bar for Cat once more. "Hey." Her other hand moved to cup Ellie's cheek, turning her head to completely face Dina again. 

"Don't look at her." Dina whispered, pleading, "Just for today, don't look at her."

She leaned in to kiss her cheek, hearing Ellie taking a sharp breath, "Focus on me." This time Ellie nodded slowly. "Im right here."

Dina felt hot, her mouth seemingly too small for the big words that were leaving it, as she said exactly what she wanted to say since the first time they had met again. 

"Just me." she whispered, pressing their lips together, relieved to feel one of Ellie's hands settling on her hip, holding her in place and squeezing her softly. 

Ellie's kisses were very careful, gentle. She clearly tried to figure out how Dina liked to be kissed. Something that made her fight a small smile. 

Her mind was quickly wiped though when Dina could feel the tips of fingers nearly shyly traveling up against her neck, up to her jaw, tracing along her face to cup her cheek. Ellie's hand was large. Her palm felt warm against her ear, her thumb gently stroking over her cheek. Her long fingers combed through the dark hair, until her fingertips even reached the base of Dina's skull. 

Ellie's hand motioned Dina to tilt her head, and the smaller girl instantly complied. Her arms would sneak around Ellie's neck as she leaned into the warm body. 

They started slowly, just softly moving their lips against each other, before Ellie would get braver by the second. Taking Dina's lip between hers, just a little bit at first than more, until Dina would part her lips for her. 

It was tender and slow, nearly lazy at first. Not like they would be doing this for this first time, not like they were in a pub, Ellie's girlfriend in the same room. 

Only when Dina wanted to pull back, just in the slightest, she noticed how Ellie's hand had changed its position. Traveled just that bit lower, palm and fingers pressed against her neck, keeping her in place. 

Such strong hands. 

Her nails dug into Ellie's shoulder blades, feeling the taller girl's strength had her body feeling hot, so hot, and she tried hard not to let any sounds escape her mouth. 

That's what Ellie wants. 

She wants me, she wants me too. 

Pulling away - even if it was only to catch her breath - was completely dismissed. On the contrary, she placed her knees on each side of Ellie's hips, pushed herself up, making the other girl lean into her seat. 

She could feel Ellie fighting a smile. Best feeling ever. 

Until. 

"You guys having fun?" 

Ellie froze. 

The pure fear in these eyes, looking up at Cat, it made Dina furious. No matter what they said, this - what they had - was no relationship. 

_Girlfriends, my ass._

Dina wasn't even sure what made her more angry, the fact that Ellie completely turned into stone or that Cat just giggled at Ellie's fear. 

The message was clear. Cat didn't mind them kissing. And that seemed to hurt Ellie even more. 


End file.
